


Hello Blue

by seanymph130



Series: The Story of Blue [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-05
Updated: 2020-02-05
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:53:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22565842
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seanymph130/pseuds/seanymph130
Summary: In which Blue, Slick and Moonboy meet for the first time. The beginning of a very long and adventurous friendship.
Series: The Story of Blue [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1623664





	Hello Blue

**Author's Note:**

> Apologies to any Spanish speaking people’s if I misused your language.

“Where do they come from...?”  
“The names?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Well, I suppose they came about the day we met.”

Uncle Eddie or Slick, as everyone else called him, stood across from him on the other side of the counter, drying a glass thoughtfully. He heard a few chuckles reverberate throughout the room behind him as memories of those days seemed to visit everyone there. It was midday and nearly all the occupants of the bar were either old friends (some of whom had been there that day) or had already heard the stories. Charlie of course had always been too young to hear most of the them, but that all changed today! It was his thirteenth birthday and he had been promised the unedited versions from the man who had been there through it all. Impatient as always he couldn’t hold back anymore.  
“So?!....”  
“What?”   
“Well what happened?!”  
“Oh you don’t need to hear that story…”  
“Oh no you don’t! I’m 13 now and you promised! Don’t go back on that now or…”  
“Alright, alright calm down, I’m just pokin’ fun. I’ll tell ya. Let’s see, where to start? Oh yes, the first day.”  
Charlie felt more than saw the bodies in the room gravitate toward the speaker, his lilting voice announcing the beginning of a tale and drawing them in. He himself was already transfixed, watching as Eddie’s eyes glazed over with nostalgia as he delved deep into his past.  
……………………………………………………   
Summer of 1954 was the hottest summer he could remember — too hot to be comfortable outside. Most people crammed into any building that would open its doors to the public for refuge from the brutal sun. So that’s what he’d done, choosing his father’s bar to bring his little brother for shade and cold drinks — not exactly the best place for a couple of young kids. However, due to the age limit there were far less people there than anywhere else and when your pops was the owner you got free drinks for life. He was just finishing up his fifth game of pool and thinking he might just start another one when a young boy came flying through the open doorway. He was clutching something in his hand, chest heaving for breath, wide eyes frantically searching for an exit. Yet despite the clearly urgent state he was in, a delightfully mischievous smile graced his countenance. Eddie straightened from his perch on the table and was making his way over when he heard distinctive shouts from the boys in blue as they came ever closer to their target.  
“Thief! Stop him! Where’d he go? Find him! Don’t let him get away this time!”  
“Those for you?” Eddie directed at the kid.   
A slight distrustful hesitation, then a quick nod in response as his body took on a defensive stance preparing to take an assault from the front now. Eddie was keen on turning him over but something about his expression made him choose a different route.   
“Heya Luca, com’ere.”  
His little brother had always looked up to him and followed him wherever he went, never hesitating and never disappointing. Luca was by his side in seconds, having been sitting near him as he schooled the adults in the ways of pool. Never taking his eyes off the runaway Eddie leaned over and whispered his instructions to Luca, who then grabbed the presumed thief’s free hand and dragged him along. Eddie watched them go, the boy turning to give him one last inquisitive look before giving his full attention to following Luca. The inhabitants of the room watched on curiously but did nothing to stop them; things like this happened quite often and Davie’s was well known for hosting fugitives. Being a curious and oft times bored child, Eddie had made it his business to find all the nooks and crannies in the bar that could possibly work as a hiding place. He had found them all and utilized them to his greatest advantage, especially when his father was in a mood. Consequently, Luca knew all of them as well. Casually striding back to his game, Eddie planted himself against the table and waited patiently for the coppers to come looking. 

Luca pulled the much larger boy into the small space with him, maneuvering slightly to quietly close the hatch behind them. Producing a packet of matches, he lit a little candle that was hid in the corner then made himself as small as possible opposite the other boy, staring up at him quietly. They stayed like this for a bit before the older boy sighed, rolled his eyes and relaxed into the most accommodating position for his body. He looked curiously over at the child in front of him and marveled at how his pale skin seemed to glow in the candlelight. He chuckled slightly and decided to see how much information he could get from him.   
“Hey, moonboy.” No reaction, save for a slow blink of those big blue eyes, watering slightly from the candles smoke. “You have a smoke?”  
Luca reached into the same pocket that held the matches and pulled out a cigarette, handing it emotionlessly to him.   
“Hmpfgh, thanks.” With the fag in his mouth, he leaned forward to use the candle as his light. Taking a long drag, he settled back into his spot and continued his assessment of the boy.   
“How old are you?” No answer… “Do you speak?” Nothing. “Okay, hint taken.” Satisfied that he wouldn’t get a peep, he settled back further, molding his body to the curve of the wall and closing his eyes to wait. In the silence he could hear the goings on out in the bar and he listened intently to the smooth talking of the boy he’d met at the door. 

“Afternoon officers. What can I do for you this fine day?”  
Four policemen had entered the bar, flustered and breathing hard. Two stood before him, bent over and trying to regain their composure while the other two slowly walked the perimeter of the room, checking everyone present.   
“Care for a cold beverage gentlemen?” Eddie couldn’t keep the grin from his voice as the fat one tried to agree but still hadn’t caught his breath and only managed a choked sound as a response. Luckily his father wasn’t in at the moment, otherwise he’d surely be in for a beating for this. A couple of glasses of water were bought over and he waited for them to finish.   
“Where’s the kid?!”   
“Woah! Right to the chase! Okay, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”  
“Who are you? Where’s the owner here? Where’s your parents kid?”  
“Well, my father is the owner and he seems to be out for the moment, so I suppose that makes me the owner!“ he got a few chuckles for that one and shrugged, knowing he’d never hear the end of it.   
“Kid, how old are you?! Twelve?! Shouldn’t you be out playing or in summer school?!”  
“Thirteen actually, and this is my playground. As for school, I’ve happily graduated from that fine establishment, thank you!” more chuckles…   
“Right, where’s the kid?” the exasperation was clear on the copper’s face.   
“No children here officer.” All innocence.   
“We saw him run in here!”  
“The heat can get to anyone, officer… cause one to see things; there are plenty of open doors around here, you could’ve easily mistaken one of them for ours. Who’s to say he’s not one door down?”  
“We never said it was a boy….”  
“Well it was an assumption, seeing as I can’t imagine such fine officers as yourself would be outrun by a girl…. Unless…. It was…?” by this time they were simply furious and the two were now joined by the others who gave a dim shake of their heads, nothing found. The fat one gave a dissatisfied grunt and they turned to leave.   
“If you see the kid it’s your civil duty to turn him in or risk being arrested yourself, as an accomplice to his crimes, you hear me?!”  
“I shall do my civil duty to the best of my abilities, officer!” and he gave the man a pathetic attempt at a salute and bow before turning slightly to lean against the table, casually unaffected by the glares being thrown at him from the retreating bodies. Once the men in blue had fully left, the room erupted into uproarious laughter and Eddie let them have it but didn’t join in. Instead he waited a couple more minutes just to be sure before rushing over to the hidden cabinet in the wall and giving the knock to signal the okay to Luca. He just hoped the risk he’d taken didn’t cost him his brother. The answering knock gave him the ability to breathe again, something he didn’t realize he wasn’t doing. Slightly light headed he opened the door to let them out.   
“Follow me” he quipped, after giving Luca a once over to make sure he hadn’t been hurt in any way. Satisfied, he led them through a door which opened to some back rooms which his father allowed to be used for some less than legal activities. Making sure each door was closed tight behind them, he ushered his companions into a small but cozy room set with two beds, a chest and a small window that opened to the river.   
“Sit.” His voice commanded obedience and the subject complied. Albeit with only a little defiance and slower than he would have liked, but judging from the groan as he did so, it was likely from pain rather than obstinance. He studied the boy in front of him realizing the closer he looked, how much younger he was than he thought, maybe even the same age as him or younger still. He had dark wavy hair that threatened to cover finely arched eyebrows under which twinkled two green eyes, one sporting the biggest shiner he’d ever seen before. In fact, the whole left side of his face was a recovering bruise and there was some dried blood crusting along his temple and cheekbone. Pulling Luca aside, he sent him for some supplies then turned his attention back to the boy.   
“Alright Blue, what’s it with the coppers? What’d you take?” that’s when he noticed both hands were now empty.   
“Oh no no no no, what’d you do with it?”  
“What?”   
“Whatever it was you had in your hand when you came causing a raucous!”  
“I didn’t have anything.”   
“Don’t try that with me, I know what I saw! I may have helped you escape but I ain’t goin down for your crimes, ya hear?! Now what’d you do with it?!”  
“What makes you think I’d tell you?”   
“Because I helped you!”   
“Way I see it, Moonboy helped me. You just talked to the cops.”  
“Now wait a second….. Wait, what? Moonboy? What’s that?”  
“The kid…”  
“Luca? Why Moonboy?”  
“Why Blue?”  
“Have you seen your face?”  
“Have you seen his?”  
“Hmm, good point, he is kinda pale.”  
“Kind of?! He’s as white as snow! Does that boy ever get out in the sun?”   
“He’s not really one for going out, unless I do of course.”  
“Of course. What’s with that, by the way? And the obvious lack of speech? You clearly don’t have that problem….”  
“Neither do you apparently!” he was fixed with a shrug then a raised eyebrow, noticeably not the one that was bruised, as he waited for answers.   
“It’s a long story.” Eddie sighed, then went to open the door for Luca, annoyed that he hadn’t gotten any information out of the boy. He was usually pretty good at this…   
Taking the supplies from Luca, he gave him an inquisitive look to which he signed ‘Father’ and shrugged, heading over to his usual spot on the chest at the end of Eddie’s bed. Eddie nodded his understanding and returned his attention to the boy sitting on his bed.  
“Alright Blue, just sit still and be quiet, got it?”  
“Why? What are you…. Oh no, no I’m just fine see! There’s no need for that!...”   
Eddie was already kneeling in front of him with the little box open, preparing to get a closer look at the source of the blood, when the boy made an attempt to stand.  
“Sit down Blue!” he obeyed, wide eyed. “Here, ya look like a building fell on ya and with the cops after you, it’s not a good way to be. So I’m gonna do ya a solid and fix y’up as best as can be, then we can discuss what’s next. Deal?!” A slow nod. “Okay then, let’s take a look at that cut.”  
It wasn’t as bad as he’d thought. After he’d cleaned the blood off, there was just a small cut to which he applied some salve and moved on. He was just checking the rest of the hairline when he noticed some bruises a bit further down.   
“Uhhhh, Blue… you know you got a handprint on your neck, right?”  
“Mmmmm…. My father has a temper.”  
“Oh…. Yeah, so does ours but umm, he never leaves marks like that.” Eddie leaned back on his heels to get a better look at his patient who looked back at him dismissively… clearly this happened a lot and he felt a surge of anger run through his blood. He was quick to keep it from his face, not yet knowing the character of the boy. He finished his ministrations in silence until he was satisfied Blue would heal properly.   
“Well, that should do it. You’ll be right as rain in a day or two I’ll bet.”  
“Thanks Slick!”  
“Really?! You’ve given me a name as well then?”   
“Well you haven’t given me any other name to call you, and this one seemed fitting, so there it is.”  
“Eddie.”  
“Eddie?”   
“Yeah, that’s my name, and he’s Luca. What about you?”   
“Aloysius, but you can call me Lou”.   
Eddie burst into laughter at how close he’d actually gotten to his name.   
“What are you laughing at then?”  
“Nothing!” Eddie gasped “but if you don’t mind, I think I’ll stick with Blue!”  
The massive grin he was sporting proved contagious and soon Blue had one to match. He’d never had a nickname before and he quite liked it. He’d also never had any friends and he felt a glimmer of hope at the thought of these two becoming just that. Now if he could just hide them from his father….. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of disgruntled voices and heavy footsteps approaching. Blue took in the two boys staring frantically at the door and grinned mischievously.   
“You boys every been to Spain?”   
“What? No, why would we go to Spain?!”  
“Want to?”   
“Mmm, never thought about it I suppose. What do you think Luca? Ever wanted to go to Spain?”  
Luca’s answering shrug was noncommittal and Eddie mimicked it to Blue. They’d never had the means to go, so why think about it?! Now didn’t seem like a very good time for it either….   
“Well that settles it! I’ll see you in Spain boys!” And with that he jumped up, ran to the window, flourished a rather spectacular bow, and perched himself on the ledge.   
“Adiós mis amigos!” he shouted before escaping out the small opening.   
The two boys were left rather mystified and a tad speechless as they tried to decide which dilemma they should address first; the vanishing bilingual fugitive or the four rather furious police officers crowding the door, led by an even angrier Davie… Eddie plastered his face with his most winning smile and decided to face the storm  
…… “Hello father”….. 

Six hours and several punishments later, he and Luca were getting ready for bed. As usual Eddie was picking up after him, cleanliness had never been his brother’s strong suit. The old leather bomber jacket was the last to go away and he handled it fondly. His grandfather had worn it through many wars and had passed it down through the generations as a sort of good luck charm. It was Eddie’s favorite item, but feeling that Luca needed it more than he did, he’d passed it on to him. He knew it had been the right thing to do. He brought it in close and inhaled deeply, taking in the scents of warm leather and family. With memories of his grandfather washing over him, he fought back a few tears and reached for a clothes hanger; something felt different. Checking the hidden pockets in the lining of the jacket, he found some papers.   
“LUCA!” he did his best to keep from shouting but only managed a slightly restrained yell. He also caught himself nearly using the new but appropriate nickname given him today. Luca came running into the room perfectly alarmed.   
“What is this?! Where’d you get this?!” Eddie held a huge wad of money in his hands, the jacket all but forgotten. Luca frantically signed his innocence and Eddie, knowing his brother incapable of something like this, came to the obvious conclusion.  
“So that’s where he put it! That little sneak!” he shook his head, disbelieving. Examining more closely, he found a paper with departure times and a destination, Madrid.   
“Spain huh? Hey Luca…. Fancy a trip?”

The plane landed heavily and they discovered a dislike of flying. It was hot and dry outside but indoors was thankfully cooler. They had no idea what they were doing and Eddie was just about ready to turn around and go home when a newly familiar voice caught his ear.   
“Bienvenido a Madrid mis amigos!” they both turned at the greeting to be pulled into a rough embrace.   
“Slick, Moonboy! I knew you’d come! You are most welcome!”  
Eddie couldn’t help the smile that crept onto his lips and somehow he knew that this would not be the last of their spontaneous adventures. He returned the hug with gusto and did his best to contain his excitement….   
“Hello Blue!”

______________________________________


End file.
